“When do I get to meet your new woman?” Nash’s tone was mild as he looked at Juan. The man had been obsessing over his new girlfriend for months.
Juan’s expression darkened. “If you think I’m introducing her to any of you, you’re out of your mind.”
“Hey, I’m married!” Quinn frowned. His wife was an event planner who worked for Red Stone too, though they never saw her since she was in a different department. Nash had met Athena, and the woman definitely brought out the best side of Quinn.
“He’s worried about me.” Nash held a hand up to his face, Vanna White style. “Can’t say that I blame him, considering I’m way better looking.”
Juan gave a derisive snort right as Travis stepped into the room, eyeing all of them.
Their boss glanced between the three of them curiously. The man had a lot of ink, but it was mostly covered today with his business suit. “Do I even want to know?”
“No. Juan’s just running his mouth.”
Their stoic boss simply gave a half-smile. “Sounds about right. The summit was a success and I’m impressed with you guys. You worked well together. I’ll be passing along my report to Harrison today, but I wanted to let you know everyone’s happy about this detail. Really great job.”
Nash kept his expression neutral but nodded his thanks even as pride swelled inside him. He hadn’t been with Red Stone Security long, and neither had Juan, so Travis’s words mattered. It was a good company, one that retained quality people because they were so careful about who they hired and did deep digs for security clearances. More than the standard stuff.
“If you have a minute, I’d like to talk to you about something before I head out,” Nash said to Travis.
His boss nodded and he said goodbye to Juan and Quinn, who quickly filed out, ready to be off for the day.
“What’s up?” Travis asked as soon as the door shut behind the others, leaving them alone in the quiet, plush conference room.
“Since this job is over, would it be possible to take a week off? Starting now.” They basically had unlimited PTO at work, but normally he would need to give more notice than this.
“Of course. I’ve got a couple of incoming contracts, at least two I’d like to tap you for. But we’re still in the negotiating phase. You and Juan seem to work well together?”
Nash nodded, smiling. They’d both started at the same time, and while Juan was low-key and liked to joke around, he took his work seriously. Not to mention they’d both been Marines, though they’d never actually served together. The common bond added something to their working relationship. “We do.”
“Good. I’ll probably put you on the next couple details together. So yeah, go ahead and take the week off. I know the last couple weeks were a lot, so take this time to relax.”
“Thanks. I will.” In reality, he wanted to not necessarily keep tabs on Ivy, but spend time with her. And maybe it was because she’d told him a little about the job she was on.
Sometimes her jobs tended to get dangerous, but this one sounded a lot more dangerous than normal.
Either way, she was in town and he was going to spend as much time with her as possible. Following suit with the others, he hurried out of the room, anxious to get home and shower. The sooner he did, the sooner he would get to see the woman of his fantasies.
* * *
Nash could hardly contain the energy buzzing through him as he sat at the high-top table in the crowded restaurant. He’d arrived early because for some reason his brain had told him that if he was early, Ivy would be too. Which would mean he got to see her sooner.
He really was a masochist.
Fuccck. She was his best friend’s younger sister. Though she was his friend too. She was five years younger than him so she hadn’t even been on his “male radar” until he’d come home from a tour at the age of twenty-four. She’d been…hell, his fantasy come to life. But she’d been nineteen and completely off-limits. He’d felt ancient, the differences between them stark at that time in his life. After that he’d reupped with the Marines and had been mostly gone for another four years. They’d reconnected not long after he’d gotten out though. He’d been trying to figure out what the hell he wanted to do with his life and she’d just started working for an international insurance company. They’d become closer then, texting and video chatting over the last two years.
Because they were friends.
Friend. Friend. Friend. Maybe if he repeated that word enough, he would get it through his thick skull.
He straightened as he saw her across the local dive that specialized in thick burgers. She said a few words to the woman at the hostess stand, then headed inside, walking across the beat-up knotty pine floors. He wasn’t surprised when a few heads swiveled her way.
Her shiny jet-black hair was down tonight, falling around her full breasts in sleek, thick sheets. In tight dark jeans, heeled boots, a fitted leather jacket over a fitted black T-shirt, she was sex walking. Hell, gliding. Because walking was something mere mortals did, but not Ivy.
Nash was off the barstool before he even realized he’d moved, instinct taking over. His grin was instantaneous as she reached him and automatically threw her arms around him in a big hug.
He tried not to smell her like a complete pervert as he held her in his arms. He also had to order his arms to let go, to not hold on longer than was appropriate. But damn, she smelled like heaven and felt like it too. All sweet and soft in his arms. He also shouldn’t be noticing the way her breasts pressed against him or how perfectly her long, lithe body fit against his own, but there it was. Turned out he was a pervert after all. Fuck him.
“I can’t believe you picked this place,” she said as she stepped back, smiling up at him.
She was tall, but he still had more than a few inches on her. Shrugging, he waited until she’d sat before sliding onto his stool across from her. “They have some of the best burgers in Miami, of course I picked it.”
“I’ve been eating at five-star restaurants for the last month, so I can’t tell you how good it is to be here.”
He snickered. “Oh no, poor little rich girl has to eat fine food for a month straight.”
Laughing aloud, she reached across the table and mock punched him in the shoulder. “I’m just saying, it’s nice to relax someplace. I know I have some amazing perks with my job, but there’s something to be said for coming to a place like this.” She glanced around, sighed happily at the brightly painted interior.
Even over the scents of the grilling meat, there was a subtle trace of “beach” in the air too. Probably because the Atlantic was only a few footsteps away. The high-top and regular tables had a sort of polyacrylic film over them with various memorabilia forever memorialized underneath. There were old concert tickets from thirty years ago on theirs, among other things. Random netting, shells and other beach-themed paraphernalia covered the purple, turquoise and yellow walls.
He drank in her profile, the way her blue eyes lit up as she seemed to relax by the second. “So how long are you in town and why can’t I tell your family that you’re here?” he asked.
She looked back at him, scrunched her nose slightly. “Because I’m on a job. And it will just make my life easier if I can get the job done without having to deal with all of them bombarding me with questions about work, when I’m settling down, blah, blah, blah. And before you say anything,” she added, “I’m grateful to have such a wonderful family but I’m dealing with a violent crew this time.” She lowered her voice at the last part. “I just need to stay fully focused right now.”